Rat-a-tat-tat! It's a New Year!

Happy New Year, Friends!!!

Apologies, folks, as I've been kind of a bore lately with this blog, but not to worry... I'm back! And very excited!

One of my new year's resolutions is to be more consistent with my blog... at LEAST one post a week. I mean, this should be relatively easy considering I eat multiple meals a day and am constantly day-dreaming of what my next meal will be.

So, let's go!

I recently revisited the amazing Pixar film Ratatouille and was inspired to create my own ratatouille! Before I get into that, I'd like to share two short clips (the first is super short) from the movie...

First up... Rat, Remy, teaching fellow rat buddy how to eat properly...

Next, Remy helps Linguine cook a famous recipe by hiding in his chef's hat...

This movie truly inspires me... It shows that anyone, and I mean anyone, can cook. That said, below is my recipe for ratatouille and it couldn't be easier.

For those of you who don't know, a ratatouille is a seasoned vegetable strew typically consisting of eggplant, zucchini, onions, green peppers, tomatoes and garlic, served hot or cold (thanks, Webster!).

My ratatouille:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Ingredients:
4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 sweet onions, chopped into chunks
2 orange peppers (any color would do), chopped - for those of you who know me well, it shouldn't be a surprise that I opted for orange peppers :)
1 eggplant, peeled and cubed
2 yellow squash, cubed
2 zucchini, cubed
2 tomatoes, chopped - must be very ripe
1 14oz. can diced tomatoes
4 tbsp capers
2 handfuls of basil, chopped
1 cup shredded pecorino romano
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients, save the pecorino romano, into an oven safe casserole dish so that all veggies are coated with olive oil. If you don't have an oven safe dish large enough to accommodate all veggies, you can absolutely split into two.

Pre-cooked veggies

Distribute pecorino romano evenly on top of the veggies and place in the oven for 1 hour. The vegetables become soft and moist as they give off water when cooked.

Please note: this recipe makes a lot of ratatouille, enough for 8 people. However, since it is so easy and versatile I recommend making all of this. It's great for a quick snack the next day, or a side to a main course. In fact, the next day I made an omelet for breakfast and used this as the filling and it was to die for.

Serve and enjoy!

See you soon!

Love,
CaraLee.